Chapter Text
They did it.
The Evil Tyrant Alliance was crushed, the Heavenly Demon was slain, and the war finally ended.
For days, the land echoed with the cries of triumph.
Truly a time of celebration.
So where was that guy?
"Sasuk! That bas— Chung Myung is gone!" Yun Jong shouted, rushing in with a piece of paper fluttering in his hand.
"Where did he go this time?" Baek Cheon muttered, exhaling in frustration as he snatched the paper.
'Be right back, don't wait up!' alongside a poorly drawn face giving a thumbs-up.
"..."
A vein throbbed visibly on Baek Cheon's forehead as he crumpled the paper in his fist.
"He always does this!" Baek Cheon growled, irritation dripping from every word. "He promised he wouldn't anymore…"
But then, the image of Chung Myung’s expression after the war flashed in his mind—a look of emptiness, right before he collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.
They thought the worst.
Both Tang Soso and the Tang Lord had assured them it was merely fatigue, that he only needed rest. So where could he have run off to?
More worryingly, for what…
"Is something wrong?" Meng So, the Beast Palace Lord, interrupted Baek Cheon's trail of thoughts.
"Chung Myung left," Baek Cheon stated flatly.
Seol Sobaek, the North Sea Ice Palace Lord, popped out from behind Meng So's large figure.
"When? Where?"
"I don’t know," Baek Cheon admitted, "but he said he'd be back." He paused, glancing at the others. "As for the celebration party..."
"We should wait for him," Im Sobyeong joined the conversation while fanning himself lazily, with Namgung Dowi and Tang Gunak standing at his side.
"But…"
"How can there be a party without the main star?" Tang Gunak remarked.
"The Lord is right. We should wait for the commander," Namgung Dowi added, nodding in agreement.
"I'm the one who said it…" Im Sobyeong mumbled displeased.
Baek Cheon wasn't convinced, so he asked the other heads. He was aware Chung Myung wouldn't want them to wait. He’d probably stroll in sometime after midnight—with more alcohol in tow.
"...I don't know how long he'll be gone," Baek Cheon concluded his explanation.
"I didn’t expect much from him anyway. Guess we’ll just wait," Jong Rigok, the Southern Edge Sect Leader, huffed dismissively.
"I suppose that gives us proper time to prepare." Jegal Jain, Zhuge Family Head reasoned.
"Alright then," Moyong Wigyung, the Moyong Family Head, agreed, going along with the crowd.
"Baek Cheon, let’s just wait for him. Everyone wants to," Un Am smiled gently.
It wasn’t surprising that everyone had adjusted to Chung Myung’s style.
"Alright," Baek Cheon finally conceded, exhaling softly.
"We’ll wait for him."
That was two years ago.